Monthly Archives: June 2022

If you've been outside (or on social media) lately, you've likely noticed the increase in vaping. At least, I know I have. As a uni student in 2022, I am often guilty of succumbing to picking up a vape at the off licence when stocking up on my weekly booze. Their bright colours and sweet smells are now a signature part of a night out.

Like many gen-Zers, I've tried smoking but the ashy, burnt taste was not for me, and the thought of smoke swirling around my lungs? No thanks. But vapes the Elf Bars brand specifically are damn tasty. I now often find myself pairing the colour of my vape to my outfit as a fashion accessory for a trip to the pub. I also find myself shotting cheap tequila with no lime and salt, and using a vape as a sweet chaser. I have let this tasty, portable and, lets face it, quite nice-looking companion into my life with no questions asked. It's like a one-night-stand that I've let turn into a clingy relationship, with me 24/7.

So, when I started reading horror stories online and people on TikTok with blatant vape addictions, I started to get a little concerned; I wanted to dig a bit deeper.

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Vaping is a growing phenomenon with more and more people making the switch to e-cigarettes in a bid to ditch tobacco cigarettes. Not only do they taste better, but they're considerably cheaper, too. Prices for vapes are as low as 4, whereas a pack of 20 Marlboro Gold are currently priced at 12.55 at Tesco. Then there's the A-list seal of approval, too, with celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Moss and Lady Gaga having all been spotted vaping.

Dr Onkar Mudhar thinks that smoking just one Elf Bar which some uni students are getting through in a single night out is the equivalent of about 48 to 50 cigarettes. Are we replacing smoking with something possibly even more dangerous?

It's no wonder that Elf Bars have been plastered all over social media platforms in a variety of flavours and colours. The hashtag #elfbar currently has 697 million views on TikTok, while #vaping has 1.6 billion views.

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In the UK, from January 2021 to January 2022, there was a 14-fold increase in the percentage of vapers that used disposables, which was most pronounced in younger adults: the use of disposable vapes in 18-year-old vapers rose from 0.89% to a staggering 56.7%, whilst among 45-year-old vapers the use of disposables rose from 1.3% to 6.2%.

While smoking tobacco was popular for Gen-Z's parents' generation it wasn't until 1964 that a definitive report was published linking smoking to lung cancer reports have shown that the recent increases in vaping have been directly associated with declining rates of youth smoking. It looks as though we're replacing smoking with vaping. And with one TikTok from Dr Onkar Mudhar claiming that smoking just one Elf Bar which some uni students are getting through in a single night out is the equivalent of about 48 to 50 cigarettes (as the bar contains two milligrams of nicotine salt which is equivalent to 20 milligrams of nicotine), are we replacing smoking with something possibly even more dangerous?

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The hot vapour and nicotine from a vape can be harmful to your oral health, says Amanda Sheehan, a dental hygienist, and clinical support specialist at TePe. Nicotine whether smoked or vaped, reduces blood flow to the gums, increasing the risks of gum disease and tooth loss.

It goes without saying that smoking is bad for your health, but something that is less commonly spoken about or understood is the impact that vaping has on oral health, says Amanda Sheehan, a dental hygienist, and clinical support specialist at TePe. The hot vapour and nicotine from a vape can be harmful to your oral health because nicotine whether smoked or vaped reduces blood flow to the gums, increasing the risks of gum disease and tooth loss. So, vaping puts you at a higher risk of developing gum disease than if you dont vape at all.

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Vaping Is A Rising Trend Amongst Gen Z - GLAMOUR UK

BEAMSVILLE, Ontario, June 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Opponents of vaping often claim that there is no health benefit to the dual use of cigarettes and nicotine vaping products. Moreover, they claim that dual use may be more harmful than smoking alone. This is contrary to the well accepted principle of harm reduction that is a cornerstone of every modern public health initiative. Instead, it rests on a fallacious binary option, where smoking and abstaining from nicotine use are the only alternatives for adults. This view is an endorsement of the discredited abstinence or prohibition models that have been discarded by modern democracies such as Canada in all other public health contexts as ineffective, unscientific, unrealistic, unenforceable, counterproductive, and ultimately harmful to public health.

Each time a vape is used instead of a cigarette, that individual reduces exposure to the thousands of harmful chemicals found in a cigarette. Additionally, dual use is often an indicator that a smoker is trying to quit or substantially reduce their cigarette intake. The dual use harm fallacy defies common sense, as dual use is a spectrum ranging from mostly smokers to mostly vapers. An individual who primarily vapes and only occasionally smokes has greatly reduced exposure to toxic chemicals.

One of the most dangerous ways to consume nicotine is by smoking it. The availability of safer nicotine products, such as vape, is intended to encourage people to quit smoking. For the most nicotine addicted, a period of dual use seems essential to free themselves from the smoked cigarette, said Martine Robert, a nurse specialised in tobacco treatment.

From an individual perspective, the goal should be the total elimination of cigarette smoking. It has been shown that the risk of cardiovascular disease due to smoking does not follow a linear dose-response curve and that simply swapping out a few cigarettes with vaping will not significantly reduce the long-term risk. However, on the road to quitting cigarettes, any reduction should be considered a positive step. Historically, the message of tobacco control advocates and the medical profession has been to reduce the number of cigarettes smoked with the aim of quitting. It is still better to consume half a pack of cigarettes per day than a full pack. As with any behavioral modification, the process of a gradual change is ultimately much more successful than a cold-turkey approach. Ironically, this stepwise introduction is exactly how we promote nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) using patches and gums. We would never tell someone to stop NRT because they are smoking the occasional cigarette, said Dr. Mark Tyndall.

The problem with the persistence of vaping myths like the dual use fallacy, is that they likely contribute to prolonging dual use and smoking in general. Smokers are not receiving clear guidance on reduced risk products from health authorities, and as a result, they are hesitant to try vaping or other harm reduction products after traditional methods have failed, said Darryl Tempest, Government Relations Counsel to the CVA Board.

We can all agree that the goal should be to phase out cigarettes and eliminate exposure to the deadly chemicals released through combustion. The focus now should be how we best help people to fully move away from cigarettes. However, taking a position that dual use is unhelpful or even dangerous is disingenuous and not supported by the scientific evidence provided, said Tyndall.

Contact:Darryl TempestGovernment Relations Counsel to the CVA Boarddtempest@thecva.org 647-274-1867

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The Canadian Vaping Association: Dual use of cigarettes and vapes if often a sign that a smoker is trying to quit - GlobeNewswire

Not so long ago, having your first cigarette was a rite of passage, like a first drink or a first kiss.

Smoking a cigarette stolen from a parental pack was something kids did in secret, behind the bike shed, down at the footy oval. It was a form of play, pretending to be a grown-up.

Now that first puff is more likely to come from a vape inhaler as tobacco companies pivot to survive.

Hailed by some as a safer alternative to smoking, there are growing concerns vaping is creating a new generation of nicotine addicts, some of whom will end up as tobacco users.

Vaping fluid, turned into an inhalable vapour by a heating element in an e-cigarette, is widely available in retail stores and online.

While fluid containing nicotine is only legally available in Australia with a prescription, vapers will tell you it's not hard to get.

Many vaping fluids sold over the counter labelled as non-nicotine, do in fact contain nicotine.

Professor Simon Chapman, who has been at the forefront of public health efforts against tobacco smoking since the 1980s, spoke to The Context this week and said it took decades for the deadly effects of tobacco smoke to become clear, and it may be the same with vaping.

"Some of my biggest concerns are with flavourants," Chapman says.

"The average vaper who vapes daily takes about five to six hundred puffs and we really have no idea what the long-term consequences of that are going to be."

Professor Chapman says time is running out to prevent a repeat of the past. He and others want to see all vaping fluid made prescription-only and importation heavily restricted.

"We need to be very, very cautious. We need to err on the side of strong regulation."

Nicola Roxon, who now chairs VicHealth, Victoria's Health Promotion Foundation, is similarly dubious about the tobacco industry's motives in promoting vaping.

"I don't think the industry has earned the right to be trusted, which is kind of their argument on vaping 'look trust us, it's not as bad as tobacco, at least it will help some people quit' when the early signs are it's actually being used as an entry product back into smoking."

Researchers at the ANU came to a similar conclusion, stating: "There is strong evidence that non-smokers who use e-cigarettes are three times as likely to go on to smoke combustible tobacco."

Other studies suggest around 10 per cent of 14 to 17-year-olds are now vaping, a higher proportion than regularly smoke.

Currently around 12 per cent of men and 8 per cent of women smoke around half of what it was at the turn of the century.

Yet smoking rates in the Indigenous population are three times that.

A quarter of adult Australians used to smoke but have quit, while more than 60 per cent of us have never smoked. Of those who do, 70 per cent say they want to quit.

People experiencing problems with their mental health are much more likely to be smokers. More than 30 per cent of those with social phobias, more than half of people with general anxietyand two-thirds of people experiencing some form of psychotic disorder smoke.

Where you live can also be an indicator of whether you're still likely to smoke.

People living in remote areas smoke at a rate of around 20 per cent. It's 13 per cent in the regions and around 10 per cent in our cities.

People in the lowest-income areas are almost four times more likely to smoke than those in the richest areas.

The highest smoking rates are now among people in their fifties, followed by the forty-somethings.

Fewer than 5 per cent of people aged over 70 smoke, in part simply because many older male smokers have died.

People in their twenties were the biggest smokers 20 years ago that's fallen from 31 per cent to 13 per cent today.

There was a time when smoking was everywhere.

Ornate ashtrays adorned every coffee table, dining table, even the bedside table.

You could smoke on trains, on planes, in taxis, in pubs, clubs and the finest restaurants.

On TV and in the movies, everyone seemed to smoke almost non-stop.

A cigarette draped from Humphrey Bogart's lip was a sign of both toughness and nonchalance;in James Dean's hand it was rebellious, even dangerous;in Audrey Hepburn's long holder, it spoke of elegance.

For a bunch of burning leaves rolled in a piece of paper, a cigarette sure had acting range.

At the end of World War II in 1945, 72 per cent of Australian men and 26 per cent of women smoked.

Servicemen were given free cigarettes with their rations.

A smoking soldier was, by definition, at ease, relaxing between battles or after victory had been won.

You couldn't see people smoke on the radio, but the ads told they were rich, mild, tasty and smooth on the throat.

That was our first clue.

Until smoking became commonplace in the first decades of the 20th century, lung and throat cancers were comparatively rare.

Doctors started noticing more and more cases until by the 1950s it was impossible to ignore.

In 1957, Humphrey Bogart died from smoking-related cancer of the oesophagus.

In 1964, the US Surgeon General announced cigarette smoking was "causally related to lung cancer", and a few months later singer Nat King Cole died from the disease at the age of just 45.

Female smoking rates peaked at 33 per cent in the mid-1970s, after tobacco companies targeted the economically empowered women's movement to make up for lost male smokers.

Faced with overwhelming evidence, and a growing burden on health budgets, the 1970s saw a phased ban on tobacco advertising on Australian television and radio.

It took much longer to remove cigarette ads from billboards, newspapers and magazines.

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Tobacco companies still bought their way onto TV screens through sporting sponsorships into the 2000s, until finally a decade ago when their brands were effectively taken from them in Australia with world-first generic packaging.

That reform was championed by then-federal health minister Nicola Roxon, who told The Context it was aimed at stopping younger people from wanting to start smoking in the first place.

"The way that tobacco is appealing, the way that packets looked, making them uglier, making it embarrassing for people to have them on the table at the pub."

Smoking was no longer associated with glamour:the drab packs now linked it to phlegm and gangrene.

Government-mandated increases in tobacco taxes had an impact too.

Back in 1980, a pack of cigarettes cost $1.10 (adjusted for inflation, that's around $5) compared with close to $50 for a pack today.

Price, along with health concerns, is the major reason people say they've quit.

So, all-in-all we have come a long way, although because death from smoking-related illness often involves a time lag of many years, we are still seeing in excess of 20,000 deaths from smoking-related disease each year.

The Context with John Barron puts news and major issues into historical, international and factual context. The new show airs on the ABC on Friday nights at 8PM AEST.

Posted9 Jun 20229 Jun 2022Thu 9 Jun 2022 at 8:03pm, updated9 Jun 20229 Jun 2022Thu 9 Jun 2022 at 8:13pm

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Is vaping a safer alternative to smoking? We just don't know yet - ABC News

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pivot, a digital health company empowering individuals to embrace wellness and enabling corporations and health plans to improve their population's health, today released Employee Vaping - What Employers Need to Know to Foster a Healthier Workforce. This free guide helps employers understand vaping, how it harms employees, and why it's essential to include a vaping cessation program when creating healthier workplaces.

Vaping is one of the fastest-growing industries globally, expected to top $61.4 billion in total worth by 2025, according to business analyst FinSMEs. Many analysts predict that vaping will become the next nicotine epidemic.

Vaping is popular among former smokers and those who have never lit up a cigarette, especially younger people. Vaping prevalence is increasing, which should cause concern and sound the alarm for employers responsible for employee wellbeing and healthcare costs. Just recently, it was reported that annual healthcare costs have risen by $2,000 for Americans who vape.

"There's a myth that vaping is safer than smoking tobacco," said David Utley, M.D., Pivot's Founder and CEO. "The plethora of tempting flavors and lack of secondhand smoke make it attractive to younger people and former smokers. But research shows vaping is not safer and causes the same health and societal issues as other forms of nicotine. Nicotine use, including vaping, can cause depression, neurological disorders, and other health problems. Pivot created this guide to help employers and their workforce understand the dangers of vaping and discover effective ways to quit."

This guide offers employers information on:

Pivot's personalized app-based cessation program helps those who vape, smoke and use other forms of tobacco. With program enrollment more than five times higher than traditional cessation programs, the Pivot program's personalized approach to the quit journey engages participants in cessation activities they find most comfortable and effective. Pivot's first-of-its-kind FDA-cleared Breath Sensor integrates with the mobile app and is clinically proven to increase motivation to quit smoking while decreasing the number of cigarettes smoked. The program also offers coaching and peer-to-peer support via the Pivot community, available from the privacy of an employee's home.

To learn more about how Pivot is working to solve this deadly and costly trend of increased tobacco and nicotine use and download the guide, here.

About Pivot

Pivot is a digital health company that empowers individuals to embrace wellness and enables corporations and health plans to improve their population's health. Pivot's first product addresses tobacco use, the leading cause of preventable illness and death in the US. Pivot addresses cessation for all forms of tobacco (combustible, vaporized and smokeless) and delivers a mobile app experience complete with tailored behavior change content, pharmacotherapy, an FDA-cleared carbon monoxide (CO) breath sensor, a supportive peer community, and a personal tobacco treatment coach. For more information, please visit: https://pivot.co/

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Pivot's Vaping Guide Exposes a Dangerous Trend in the Workplace - Business Wire

OAKLAND California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a bipartisan coalition, urged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect public health and address the youth vaping crisis by banning the sale of synthetic nicotine products. Synthetic nicotine products, which are often marketed as tobacco-free,have become increasingly popular in recent years as manufacturers attempt to evadeincreasingFDA regulation of e-cigarettes and other traditionaltobacco products. In todays letter, the coalition urges the FDA to use its recently clarifiedauthority to deny authorization for all synthetic nicotine products, or at a minimum, deny authorization for all flavored synthetic nicotine products.

Syntheticnicotine products have become the new driver of the youth vaping crisis, with manufacturersusing fun flavors and attractive marketing to addict a newgeneration to nicotine,said Attorney General Bonta.While synthetic nicotine products claim to be 'healthier' and 'safer' than traditional tobacco products, these products, particularly when flavored, can pose significant health risks. The FDA has the ability to protect public health by putting a stop to the sale of synthetic nicotineproducts. I urge the FDA to move swiftly beforeanewgeneration of teens starts vaping andsmoking.

Smoking is the number one preventable killer in the United States, resulting in more deaths than the number of people who die from alcohol, AIDS, car accidents, illegal drugs, murder, andsuicides combined. Every day, thousands of young people will use an e-cigarette for the first time, and many of those products will be flavored. The 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and FDA, found that one-tenth of high school students reported regularly using an e-cigarette. Of those students, the vast majority use a flavored product and around one-quarter reported that their go-to brand was the syntheticnicotine product Puff Bar.

In today's letter, a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general urge the FDA to ban the sale ofall synthetic nicotine products given the known and unknown dangers these products pose to public health. These products, manufactured in a lab with little to no regulatory scrutiny, are being used to addict the next generation of smokers through appealing flavors and misleading health claims. At a minimum, the FDA must ban the sale of all flavored synthetic nicotine products and require manufacturers to submit evidence to back up their claims that these products can help people quit smoking and are healthier and safer than traditional tobacco use.

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general ofIdaho, Illinois, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Alaska, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming in filing the comment letter.

A copy of the comment letter can be foundhere.

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Attorney General Bonta Joins Bipartisan Coalition in Urging FDA to Ban Sale of Synthetic Nicotine Products - California Department of Justice